The present invention provides a self-contained toothbrush in which all of the elements required for tooth brushing are contained in a convenient unit.
The concept of a self-contained toothbrush is not new. Various self-contained toothbrush designs are contained in U.S. Pat. No. 1,473,766 to Healy; U.S. Pat. No. 1,642,620 to Merrill; U.S. Pat. No. 2,455,600 to Molumby et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 2,601,244 to Boulicault. However, no such self-contained toothbrushes are known to be available on the commercial market at the present time.
The devices illustrated in the above-identified patents are generally too complex to be practical in a commercial sense. For example, most of the devices require that the brush element be releasably attached to a handle element, and it is difficult to achieve a suitably rigid construction in this fashion, particularly on a mass production basis. Also, the device is generally too expensive to construct to represent a practical alternative to a standard toothbrush in a container. The devices typically do not carry sufficient dentifrice to last for a reasonable period of time. Moreover, the devices are all relatively large and bulky because their diameters must be sufficient to enclose the brush head.